DIY Chicken Question?

Paul.M · Feb 15, 2015

This is from the DIY section and it is a bit of a strange one.

"I have a large chicken house about 100 meters (100 yards) from my house. I need to run an electrical cable for lights (4 60-watt bulbs). As the house is mobile (I would typically move it 20 meters in one direction or another), the cable will not be fixed in place.

Knowing virtually nothing about electrics and electrical cables, I was wondering if it would be OK to just use an ordinary extension cable or just buy 100m of ordinary cable? I have heard that using a thicker cable will reduce resistance and consequently the amount of energy consumed by the cable itself. However, no idea of how much power the cable would use, and whether for a 240-watt load if the energy saving of a better cable justifies the higher cost of the cable. The lights would be running an average of 4 hours per day, so total energy consumption would be about 1 KW per day.

Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated."

Plonker 3 · Feb 15, 2015

Im going to look at some of the suggestions that have been given to this, could do with a good laugh.

Jamie · Feb 15, 2015

Do you know how he intends on getting the cable from A to B? Underground/overhead ? It sounds like he wants to just reel out an extension trailing along the floor *cringe*.

Silly Sausage · Feb 16, 2015

He could do it by having a bare overhead cable on the route the mobile home travels and a pantograph on the roof.
(like on the railways)
Then underground SWA to the chicken shack.

Paul.M · Feb 16, 2015

Dillb said:
Im going to look at some of the suggestions that have been given to this, could do with a good laugh.

Only one reply but it did not cover everything that needs to be looked at.

Jamie said:
Do you know how he intends on getting the cable from A to B? Underground/overhead ? It sounds like he wants to just reel out an extension trailing along the floor *cringe*.

That is one of the main question???

Archy Styrigg said:
He could do it by having a bare overhead cable on the route the mobile home travels and a pantograph on the roof.
(like on the railways)
Then underground SWA to the chicken shack.

This is supposed to be for the Trainees to answer lol. Nice hint though

We have to design any install to protect People, Property and Livestock. What do chickens do? Peck and scratch at the ground for food, how long will any cable last just laying on the floor?

We know the load, distance of cable run, farm land/field, that the supply needs to be moved 20m in different directions and it is for chickens. We do not know the earthing arrangements but lets just assume it is a TT for this question.

ElectroChem · Feb 16, 2015

I would be thinking something like an underground run to an IP56 outlet on a bollard, then a 20M lead from the chicken house. Opinions, mentors?

edit: Good point Paul, the other thing chickens do is roost. At the chicken sheds we work on, anything horizontal that can't hold the weight of 100 chickens needs a wire along the top with a zapper unit. Not sure how high chooks can flap up, maybe a tall pole with a fly lead?

Paul.M · Feb 16, 2015

ElectroChem said:
I would be thinking something like an underground run to an IP56 outlet on a bollard, then a 20M lead to the chicken house. Opinions, mentors?

We are on the same wave length. Maybe more than one bollard depending on where the chicken house will be moved to??

markc123 · Feb 16, 2015

I'd be thinking along the lines of a touring hook-up point .. so yeah, i agree with paul.m and electrochem ... anyway, the main reason for me posting this reply is that it took me 3 goes at reading the opening sentence to realise it said 'large chicken HOUSE' and not 'large chicken' lol ... i need more kip of a night i think.